Who hasn’t read the tragic story of the The Little Match Girl, a cruel children’s story about a little girl who lights match after match to protect herself from the wintry cold. Véronique Olmi presents in this book her own original version of this classic story about poverty and solitude.
A young homeless girl wanders aimlessly around a town by the sea while all around her tourists amuse themselves on the beach under a scorching sun. She seeks comfort in a church and finds there protection and solace. A dangerous ray of hope.
This sensitive and vibrant story, written with poetry and grace, is a tale in which humanist undertones resound. While it captures the essence of Andersen’s tale, its immediacy reaches out to the modern reader.
Véronique Olmi’s tale is accompanied in this volume by Andersen’s original text to allow for a comparative reading.
A playwright and an actress, Véronique Olmi is also the author of several novels: Bord de mer (2001), Numéro 6 (2002), Un si bel avenir (2003), all published by Actes Sud, and of a collection of short stories (Privée, Babel, 2003).